i 

THE 

PRINCIPLES  AND  RULES 

  OF  THE   

MORAVIAN  CONGREGATION 

  AT   

SALEM,  N.  C. 


Adopted  by  Congregation  Council,  May  gth,  i8gj. 
Approved  by  Prov,  Elders  Conference,  May  nth,  i8gj. 


WITH  APPENDICES. 


SALEM,  N.  C. 

CRIST  &  KEEHLN,  PRINTERS. 
1893. 


CONTENTS. 

Page 


1.  Historical  Note   3 

2.  Chapter  I.    Doctrine   6 

3.  Chapter  II.   The  Brotherly  Agreement   8 

4.  Chapter  III.    Government  11 

5.  Chapter  IV.    Ministers  16 

6.  Chaptsr  V.    Rules  and  Regulations  18 

7.  The  Charter.....  '.  21 

8.  Appendix  I.    Outline  of  the  History  of  the 

Moravian  Church  27 

9.  Appendix  II.    Moravian  Missions  29 

10.  Applndix  III.   The  Southern  District  30 

11.  Appendix  IV.    The  Salem  Congregtaion  31 

12.  Appendix  V.    Special  Services  and  Church 

Customs  of  the  Salem  Congregation  33 


HISTORICAL  NOTE. 


The  Unitas  Fratrum,  or  Church  of  the  United  Brethren, 
commonly  called  Moravians,  arose  in  the  countries  of  Bohemia 
and  Moravia,  which  are  now  provinces  of  the  Austrian  Empire. 

This  part  of  Europe  was  originally  Christianized  by  mission- 
aries of  the  Greek  Church.  Hence,  there  always  existed  a  freer 
Christian  spirit,  and  a  warmer  attachment  to  the  use  of  the  native 
tongue  in  God's  worship,  than  was  the  case  in  countries  where  the 
Gospel  was  first  proclaimed  by  the  Roman  Catholic  Church. 

Of  this  freer  and  more  Biblical  tendency,  the  great  reformer, 
John  Hus,  was  an  eminent  example.  It  was  his  earnest  effort  to 
bring  back  the  corrupted  Church  of  his  times  to  the  rules  of  the 
Holy  Bible.  His  fervent  labors  were  closed  by  his  heroic  martyr- 
dom at  Constance,  July  6th,  1415. 

About  forty  years  after  the  death  of  John  Hus,  a  number  of 
his  earnest-mindeci  followers,  hopeless  of  any  complete  reform  in 
the  old  national  Church,  banded  themselves  together,  in  north- 
eastern Bohemia,  under  the  name  oi  Brethren^  In  1467  they 
received  the  episcopacy  from  the  Waldensians,  and  were  then  con- 
stituted as  an  independent  Church,  bearing  the  name  of  "  The 
Uiiited  Brethren. ' ' 

For  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  years,  this  earliest  of  the 
Protestant  Churches  flourished  greatly,  though  amid  frequent  and 
bitter  persecutions.  They  translated  the  Holy  Scriptures,  pub- 
lished many  hymns  and  other  religious  writings,  instituted  schools, 
and  were  known  for  the  purity  of  their  Christian  life.  They  stood 
on  friendly  terms  with  Luther  at  Wittemberg,  and  with  Calvin  and 
his  fellow-laborers  at  Strasburg  and  Geneva.  Having  spread  into 
Poland,  as  well  as  Bohemia  and  Moravia,  this  Church  of  the  United 
Brethren  bid  fair  to  become  the  National  Protestant  Church  of 
these,  at  that  time,  prosperous  countries. 


4 


But,  in  the  Thirty  Years'  War,  the  Protestant  faith  was  crushed 
under  the  iron  hand  of  Austria,  animated  by  the  counsel  and  as- 
sisted by  the  persevering  efforts  of  the  Jesuits.  Some  of  the  lead- 
ing brethren  perished  by  the  sword,  many  were  exiled,  and  the 
remnant  was  gradually  forced  back  into  the  Roman  Catholic  com- 
munion. 

A  century  later  the  preaching  of  a  Moravian,  Christian  David 
by  name,  was  the  means  of  a  powerful  awakening  in  certain  Mora- 
vian villages  among  the  descendants  of  the  Ancient  Brethren. 
Desirous  of  serving  God  in  the  way  in  which  their  fathers  had 
done,  they  fled  Irom  their  native  land,  and  found  refuge  on  the 
estates  of  a  Saxon  nobleman,  Count  Zinzendorf 

This  young  and  deeply  pious  Count  interested  himself  strongly 
in  the  Moravian  exiles,  and,  at  the  sacrifice  of  his  worldly  honors 
and  estates,  became  their  leader  through  the  followmg  forty  years, 
until  his  death,  in  1760. 

A  remarkably  deep  and  blessed  outpouring  of  the  Spirit,  on 
August  13th,  1727,  confirmed  the  grace  which  the  exiles  had  already 
received.  Filled  with  a  fervent  love  for  Christ  they  desired  to 
testify  to  Him  both  at  home  and  abroad.  This  led  to  the  begin- 
ning of  the  missionary  work  of  the  Moravians  among  the  heathen 
in  1732,  which  is  still  their  chief  enterprise,  carried  on  in  every 
great  division  of  the  globe. 

The  desire  of  the  Moravians  to  bring  the  Gospel  to  the  Ameri- 
can Indians  served  as  a  main  motive  for  their  settlement  in  this 
country.  The  central  Northern  settlement  at  Bethlehem  was  formed 
in  1 74 1.  The  Moravians  having  emigrated  to  North  Carolina  in 
1753,  the  settlement  of  Salem  was  begun  in  1766. 

In  1735,  the  episcopacy  of  the  Bohemian  Brethren  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  Renewed  Moravian  Church  by  the  two  surviving 
bishops  of  the  ancient  line,  and  gradually  the  Church  was  consti- 
tuted into  its  present  form  of  government.  The  supreme  control, 
under  Christ,  is  exercised  by  its  Synods.  During  the  intervals 
between  Synods,  Conferences  of  three  or  more  brethren  conduct 
the  affairs  of  the  Church. 

The  Moravian  belief  consists  of  the  simple  evangelical  faith  on 
which  the  Protestant  Churches  are  substantially  agreed.  They 
hold  that  the  Son  of  God  shed  His  blood  on  the  cross  for  sinners, 
that  they  might  be  forgiven  through  faith  in  Him,  and,  when  for- 
given, might  exercise  their  faith  in  good  works,  and  thus  become 
ready  for  heaven. 


5. 


From  the  earliest  times  the  Church  of  the  Brethren  has  laid 
more  stress  on  the  development  of  Christian  life  than  upon  the 
working  out  of  the  minuter  varieties  of  doctrine. 

Several  peculiarities,  such  as  Love-feasts,  after  the  example  of 
the  Apostolic  Church,  and  an  Easter  morning  confession  of  the 
risen  Savior  in  their  graveyards,  exist  and  are  greatly  esteemed  in 
many  of  the  Moravian  churches. 

Other  peculiarities,  such  as  marriage  by  lot,  a  common  house- 
keeping, exclusive  settlements  of  Moravians,^  and  the  like,  pre- 
vailed for  a  time,  but  having  fulfilled  their  purpose,  especially  dur- 
ing the  hardships  of  early  colonial  settlement,  have  long  since  been 
given  up. 

The  present  form  of  doctrine,  practice  and  government  of  the 
Moravian  Church,  as  represented  in  the  life  of  its  cen'ral  congre- 
gation in  the  South,  that  of  Salem,  N.  C,  will  be  found  set  forth 
in  the  following  pages. 


6 


CHAPTER  I. 


DOCTRINE. 

The  General  Synod  of  the  Church  of  the  United  Brethren  has 
laid  down  the  following  Doctrinal  Principles  : 

1.  The  Fotmdation  of  our  Dodriue. 

The  Holy  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  are  and 
shall  remain  the  only  rule  of  our  faith  and  practice.  We  venerate 
them  as  God's  Word,  which  he  spake  to  mankind  of  old  time  in 
the  Prophets  and,  at  last,  in  His  Son  and  by  his  Apostles,  to  in- 
struct us  unto  salvation  through  faith  in  Christ  Jesus.  We  are 
convinced  that  all  truths  that  declare  the  will  of  God  for  our  salva- 
tion are  fully  contained  therein. 

2.  The  Chief  Substance  of  our  Doctriyie. 

The  Renewed  Brethren's  Church  has,  from  the  beginning, 
regarded  as  her  chief  doctrine  this  truth  :  "Jesus  Christ  is  the 
propitiation  for  our  sins  ;  and  not  for  ours  only,  but  also  for  the 
sins  of  the  whole  world." — (I.John,  ii  2.)  "For  he  hath  made 
him  to  be  sin  for  us  who  knew  no  sin  ;  that  we  might  be  made  the 
righteousness  of  God  in  him." — II  Cor.,  v.  21.),  or,  as  we  sing  in 
one  of  our  hymns — 

"Whosoever  believeth  in  Christ's  redemption, 
Will  find  free  grace  and  a  complete  exemption 
From  serving  sin !" 

With  this  our  leading  doctrine,  the  following  facts  and  truths, 
clearly  attested  by  Holy  Scripture,  are  linked  in  essential  connec- 
tion and,  with  it,  form  our  understanding  of  the  Gospel  : 

{a)  The  doctrine  of  the  total  depravity  of  our  human  7iature  ; 
i.  e. ,  that  since  the  Fall  there  is  no  health  in  man,  and  that  he  has 
no  power  left  by  which  to  save  himself  (John  iii,  6  ;  Rom.  iii,  23  ; 
Rom.  vii,  18  ;  Rom.  i,  18 — 32  ;  Rom.  iii,  9-18  ;  Ephes.  ii,  9-1S. 


7 


{b)  The  doctrine  of  the  love  of  God,  the  Father,  to  the  falleii 
human  race,  according  to  which  He  "  chose  us  in  Christ  before  the 
foundation  of  the  world,"  and  "so  loved  the  world  that  he  gave 
his  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  in  him  should  not 
perish  but  have  eternal  life."  (Eph.  i.,  3.  4  ;  Ephes.  ii.,  4  ;  John 
iii.,  16  ;  I  John  iv.,  9.) 

{c)  The  doctrine  of  the  real  Godhead  and  the  real  humanity 
of  fesus  Christ ;  i.  e.,  that  the  only  begotten  Son  of  God,  He  by 
whom  all  things  in  heaven  and  earth  were  created,  forsook  the 
glory  he  had  with  the  Father  before  the  world  was,  and  took  upon 
himself  our  flesh  and  blood,  that  in  all  things  he  might  be  made 
like  unto  his  brethren,  yet  without  sin.  (I  John  i.,  1-3;  John  i., 
14  ;  John  xvii.,  5  ;  Phil,  ii.,  6,  7  ;  Hebr.  ii.,  14,  17  ;  Hebr.  iv. ,  15  ; 
Col.  i.,  17-19;  I  John  v.,  20) 

{d^  The  doctrine  of  our  Reconciliatioyi  with  God  and  our 
Justification  before  Him  through  the  Sacrifice  of  Jesus  Chi^ist ;  i.  e., 
that  ' '  Christ  was  delivered  up  for  our  trespasses  and  was  raised  for 
our  justification,"  and  that  alone  by  faith  in  him  "  we  have  through 
his  blood  forgiveness  of  sin,"  peace  with  God,"  and  freedom 
from  the  service  of  sin.  (Rom.  iii.,  24,  25  ;  Rom.  v.,  i  ;  I  Cor. 
i.,  30  ;  Hebr.  ii.,  17  ;  Hebr.  xi.,  12  ;  I  Peter  i.,  18,  19  ;  I  John  i., 
18,  19  ;  I  John  i.,  9  ;  H  Cor.  v.,  18,  19.) 

((?)  The  doctrine  of  the  Holy  Ghost  a7id  the  Operations  of 
His  Grace ;  i.  e. ,  that  without  him  we  are  unable  to  know  the 
truth  ;  that  it  is  he  who  leads  us  to  Christ  by  working  in  us  the 
knowledge  of  sin  and  faith  in  Jesus,  and  that  he  "  beareth  witness 
with  our  spirit  that  we  are  the  children  of  God."  (John  xvi.,  8-1 1, 
13,  14;  I  Cor.  xii.,  3;  Rom.  viii.,  16.)  ■ 

(/)  The  doctrine  of  Good  Works  as  the  Fruit  of  the  Spirit  ; 
i.  e.,  that  in  them  faith  manifests  itself  as  a  living,  acting  power, 
which  induces  us,  out  of  love  and  gratitude  to  him  who  died  for 
us,  willingly  to  follow  the  commandments  of  God.  (John  xix.,  15  ; 
Rom.  vi.,  11-14  ;  I  Cor.  vi.,  20  ;  Gal.  v.,  6,  22-24  ;  I  John  v.,  3-5  ; 
Ephes.  ii.,  8-10;  James  ii.,  17.) 

{g)  The  doctrine  of  the  Fellowship  of  Believers  with  One 
Another ;  i.  e.,  that  they  are  all  one  in  Christ  Jesus,  the  Head  of 
his  body,  and  are  all  members  one  of  another.  (John  xvii.,  21  ; 
Matt,  xxiii.,  8  ;  Ephes.  iv.,  4.) 


8 


{h)    The  doctrine  of  the  Second  Coming  of  the  Lord  in  Glory 
and  of  the  Resurrection  of  the  Dead,  unto  Life  or  unto  fudgment. 
(Acts  i.,  II  ;  John  vi. ,  40 ;  John  xi.,  25,  26  ;  John  iii.,  36  ;  John  v., 
25-29  ;  I  Thess.  iv.,  14-17.) 

While  we  do  not  draw  up  and  set  forth  these  truths  and  our 
acceptance  of  them  in  a  strictly  formulated  creed,  our  apprehension 
of  the  chief  substance  of  Christian  doctrine  has  found,  in  a  special 
way,  its  expression  in  what  has  been  solemnly  declared  by  our 
Church,  year  by  year,  for  more  than  a  hundred  years  past,  in  our 
Litany  on  Easter  morning. 


I.  The  fundamental  object  of  our  religious  union  is  to  con- 
stitute a  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  in  which  the  pure  Word  of  ^od 
is  preached,  tjie  sacraments  are  duly  administered.,  pnd  Christian 


2.  As  members  of  the  Church  of  United  Brethren,  commonly 
called  Moravians,  we  acknowledge  the  Holy  Scriptures  of  the  Old 
and  New  Testaments  to  contain  everything  essential  to  salvation 
and  to  be  the  only  rule  of  our  faith  and  practice. 

3.  We  recognize,  as  a  true  member  of  Christ's  body,  the 
Church,  (every  one  who,  through  the  Holy  Ghost,  has  experienced 


the  new  birth;  Hence,  we  regard  all  children  of  God  as  our  breth- 
ren in  Christ,  loving  them  sincerely  and  heartily.  We  decidedly 
disclaim  all  sectarian  animosities,  arising  from  diversity  of  views  on 
points  of  doctrine,  discipline,  or  church-government.  We  desire 
to  live  in  cordial  fellowship  with  the  members  of  all  evangelical 
Churches. 

4.  Esteeming  it  a  great  privilege  to  meet  together  for  the 
worship  of  God  and  for  mutual  edification,  we  will  be  faithful  in 
attending  our  Church  services,  "not  forgetting  the  assembling  of 
ourselves  together."    (Hebr.  x.,  25.) 


CHAPTER  II. 


THE  BROTHERLY  AGREEMENT. 


discipline  is  maintained. 


9 


5-  We  consider  ourselves  bound  faithfully  to  provide  a  suffi- 
cient and  suitable  support  for  our  ministers  and  their  families  ;  and 
we  will  also  bear  a  part  in  defraying  all  other  expenses  connected 
with  the  service  of  the  congregation. 

6.  As  members  of  the  Moravian  Church  we  consider  ourselves 
in  duty  bound  to  contribute  to  the  Causes  of  the  District  to  which 
we  belong,  and  of  the  Brethren's  Unity  at  large. 

7.  We  recognize  our  children  to  be  the  property  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  purchased  with  his  precious  blood  in  order  that  they 
might  be  brought  up  in  his  nurture  and  admonition.  (Ephes.  v. ,  4.) 
Hence,  it  is  expected  of  parents  to  pray  for  their  children,  train 
them  in  the  commandments  and  love  of  our  Saviour,  guard  them 
against  what  might  prove  hurtful  to  their  souls,  gather  them  in 
family  devotions,  and  set  them  a  consistent  Christian  example. 
We  further  regard  it  the  duty  of  parents  that  they  cause  their  chil- 
dren punctually  to  attend  school,  religious  instruction  and  church 
services  ;  that  they  provide  them  with  suitable  employment  at  home 
and  accustom  them  to  habits  of  order,  decorum  and  diligence  in 
the  business  of  life. 

8.  We  will  endeavor,  in  true,  brotherly  love,  to  serve  and  aid 
one  another  ;  to  bear  with  and  forgive  one  another  ;  mutually  to 
exercise  meekness,  humility  and  becoming  respect,  and  carefully 
to  avoid  back-biting,  slandering  or  other  uncharitable  practices, 

9.  As  we  are  called,  through  the  grace  of  God,  to  be  children 
of  peace,  we  will  follow  after  peace  with  all  men,  carefully  endeav- 
oring to  obey  the  precepts  of  our  Saviour  :  Whatsoever  ye  would 
that  men  should  do  to  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them  ;"  and  bearing 
in  mind  the  important  charge:  "Love  your  enemies,  bless  them 
that  curse  you,  and  pray  for  them  that  despitefully  use  you  and 
persecute  you." 

10.  We  recognize  the  duty  of  relieving  the  necessities  of  all 
such  members  as  may,  through  age,  sickness  or  other  afflictions, 
have  become  destitute  and  unable  to  maintain  themselves.  We 
likewise  assume  the  obligation  of  so  providing  for  the  education  of 
destitute  orphans  in  the  congregation,  that  they  may  become  use- 
ful members  of  socifety  and  capable  of  procuring  for  themselves  an 
honest  livelihood. 

11.  With  regard  to  dress  and  domestic  arrangements,  we  will 
live  within  our  means,  and  will  abstain  from  anything  which  might 
rightly  be  regarded  as  unworthy  of  a  child  of  God. 


lO 


12.  We  consider  ourselves  in  duty  bound  to  provide  things 
honest  in  the  sight  of  men  as  well  as  in  the  sight  of  God.  We  will, 
therefore,  endeavor  to  be  "  not  slothful  in  business,  fervent  in  spirit, 
serving  the  Lord,"  (Rom.  xii.  ii.),  and  we  will  steadily  discoun- 
tenance the  sin  of  habitual  idleness. 

13.  We  will  not  forget  to  hallow  the  Lord's  day.  We  will 
make  a  faithful  use  of  it  as  a  day  of  Christian  edification  and  Chris- 
tian usefulness.  The  carrying  on  of  worldly  business  or  labor, 
other  than  works  of  charity  or  necessity  ;  the  frequenting  of  places 
of  worldly  resort,  or  anything  which  interferes  with  edification  and 
attendance  on  divine  worship  is  wholly  inadmissible. 

14.  Regarding  intemperance  in  the  use  of  strong  drink  as  a 
most  pernicious  and  sinful  practice,  rendering  men  in  an  especial 
degree  the  servants  of  sin,  we  will  endeavor  to  remove  from  among 
us  everything  that  can  furnish  occasion  for  this  evil,  and  give  timely 
admonition  and  warning  to  those  who  may  be  exposing  themselves 
to  temptation. 

15.  We  will  carefully  beware  of  all  books  and  publications 
which  are  opposed  to  the  Bible,  or  treat  it  irreverently,  or  of  such 
as  have  an  immoral  tendency.  We  will  abstain  from  participation 
in  such  amusements  as  have  an  injurious  or,  at  least,  a  question- 
able tendency  with  respect  to  Christian  morals. 

16.  In  case  misunderstandings  or  differences  arise  among  any 
of  the  members  they  shall  first,  according  to  the  commandment  of 
Christ  (Matt,  xviii.,  15-17.)  endeavor  to  come  to  an  amicable 
agreement  aud  equitable  settlement  among  themselves.  Should 
they  fail  in  so  doing,  the  persons  at  variance  shall  select  some 
other  members  of  the  congregation  to  act  as  mediators  ;  and,  if  the 
difficulty  cannot  be  so  arranged  to  mutual  satisfaction,  the  case 
shall  be  referred  to  the  Board  of  Elders  for  brotherly  investigation 
and  decision.  In  case,  however,  the  point  in  dispute  should  render 
a  resort  to  the  courts  of  justice  indispensable,  everything  at  variance 
with  our  character  as  brethren  is  to  be  avoided. 

17.  Should  any  one  be  overtaken  in  a  fault  (Gal.  vi.,  i.)  we 
will  endeavor  to  restore  such  an  one  in  the  spirit  of  meekness  ; 
and  when,  on  committing  an  error,  we  are  admonished  and  re- 
proved, we  will,  by  the  grace  of  God,  receive  reproof  thankfully, 
and  strive  to  amend,  considering  all  such  admonitions  as  great 
benefits  conferred  upon  us.  » 


1 1 

1 8.  Inasmuch  as  it  behooves  every  member  of  the  Church  in 
all  things  to  walk  worthy  of  the  Gospel,  so,  also,  shall  those  who 
give  offence  by  their  conduct,  and  refuse  correction,  be,  after  re- 
peated admonition  and  reproof,  excluded  from  church  fellowship 
according  to  the  rule  :  Put  away  from  among  yourselves  that 
wicked  person." 

19,  If,  therefore,  any  member,  in  word  or  deed,  act  c6ntrary 
to  the  rules  and  regulations  of  the  Church,  and,  by  his  example, 
tempt  others  to  do  the  same  ;  transgressing  the  laws  of  the  country  ; 
overreaching  his  neighbor  in  trade  ;  taking  part  in  gambling  or 
lotteries  :  being  guilty  of  lying,  backbiting,  and  calumny  ;  giving 
himself  up  to  drunkenness  ;  neglecting  to  satisfy  his  creditors  ; 
committing  the  sins  of  cursing  and  swearing,  fornication  and  adul- 
tery, or  other  manifest  works  of  the  flesh,  as  enumerated  in  Gal.  v., 
19-21, — such  an  one  can  no  longer  be  considered  a  member  of  the 
Church. 


CHAPTER  III. 


GOVERNMENT. 

I.      GENERAL  SYNODS. 

The  government  of  the  Brethren's  Church,  under  the  supreme 
guidance  of  the  Great  Head  of  his  Church,  our  Lord  and  Saviour, 
Jesus  Christ,  is  exercised  by  General  Synods.  Such  a  Synod  con- 
stitutes, wherever  assembled,  the  body  to  which  pertains  the  chief 
legislative  power  for  all  the  general  affairs  of  the  Church. 

2.     THE  unity's  elders'  CONFERENCE. 

The  oversight  and  direction  of  the  Unity  from  one  General 
Synod  to  the  next,  in  all  those  matters  which  fall  within  the  com- 
petency of  the  General  Synods,  is  committed  to  a  Board,  appointed 
by  the  General  Synod  and  called  the  Unity's  Elders'  Conference, 
or  the  directing  Board  of  the  Protestant  Unity  of  the  Brethren. 


12 


This  Board  acts  in  the  name  of  and  by  commission  Irom  the  Gen- 
eral Synods,  and  is  responsible  to  it  for  its  actions.  All  other 
Boards,  as  well  as  servants  of  the  Unity,  by  whatsoever  power 
appointed,  are  responsible  to  this  Board,  in  all  matters  over  which 
the  General  Synod  has  jurisdiction.  There  is,  however,  this  limi- 
tation, that  the  supervision  of  the  British  and  American  Provinces 
of  the  Unity  devolves  solely  on  the  Unity  Department  of  the 
Unity's  Elders'  Conference. 

3.      PROVINCIAL  SYNODS. 

The  chief  direction  of  all  provincial  concerns  and  the  power  of 
legislating  upon  them  belongs  to  Provincial  Synods.  The  Ameri- 
can Province  is  divided  into  two  Provincial  Districts,  each  with  its 
Provincial  Synod  and  Provincial  Elders'  Conference.  These  Synods 
are  specially  charged  with  the  duty  of  examining  thoroughly  into 
the  spiritual  as  well  as  temporal  condition  of  the  congregations 
within  the  Province. 

4.     THE  PROVINCIAL  ELDERS'  CONFERENCE. 

The  chief  Board  of  administration  in  all  provincial  affairs  is 
the  Provincial  Elders'  Conference.  The  Board  is  elected  by  the 
Provincial  Synod,  and  is  responsible  to  that  body  for  its  adminis- 
tration. 

5.     THE  CONGREGATION  COUNCIL  OF  SALEM  CONGREGATION. 

1.  The  Congregation  Council  is  composed  of  all  brethren, 
communicant  members  of  the  congregation,  who  have  attained  to 
the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  and  have  subscribed  to  the  rules  and 
regulations  of  the  congregation,  and  have  paid  their  church  dues. 
(See  Sect.  7  of  the  Charter).  The  act  of  subscribing  to  the  rules 
can  only  take  place  in  the  presence  of  the  Chairman  or  of  the 
Board  of  Elders,  who  shall  add  the  date  of  the  signature. 

2.  The  sisters  of  the  congregation  may  be  present  at  the 
meetings  of  the  Council,  and  shall  participate  in  its  proceedings 
as  far  as  the  terms  of  the  Charter  permit. 

3.  The  pastor,  or  in  case  there  be  more  than  one,  shall  pre- 
side at  all  meetings  of  the  Council.  In  case  of  his  absence,  the 
Congregation  Council  shall  appoint  a  Chairman  pro  tern.  All  meet- 
ings shall  be  announced  on  two  occasions  of  public  worship.  It 


13 


shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Congregation  Council  to  elect  the  delegates 
to  the  Provincial  Synod  and  the  District  Conference  ;  the  Trustees, 
the  elective  members  of  the  Board  of  Elders  and  of  the  School 
Board,  and  all  other  officers  and  boards  of  the  congregation  not 
otherwise  provided  for. 

4.  The  Board  of  Elders  shall  have  authority  at  any  time  to 
convene  a  special  meeting  of  the  Congregation  Council.  Upon 
application  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  or  ten  members  of  the  Coun- 
cil, they  shall  likewise  call  a  special  meeting. 

5.  All  standing  officers  elected  by  the  Congregation  Council 
shall  continue  in  office  until  their  successors  are  elected.  All  elec- 
tions shall  be  by  ballot,  and  a  majority  of  the  votes  cast  shall  be 
necessary  to  a  choice. 

6.  All  matters  w^hich  relate  to  the  temporal  or  spiritual  wel- 
fare of  the  congregation  may  be  discussed  in  the  Council  at  the 
motion  of  any  member,  or  by  the  request  of  the  Board  of^Elders 
or  the  Board  of  Trustees. 

7.  The  annual  report  of  the  Board  of  Elders  shall  be  sub- 
mitted to  the  Council,  and  the  annual  accounts  of  the  congregation 
shall  all  be  presented  to  the  Council  within  three  months  after  the 
close  of  the  fiscal  year. 

6.     THE  BOARDS  OF  THE  SALEM  CONGREGATION. 

I.     The  Board  of  Elders. 

a.  The  Board  of  Elders  is  composed  of  the  Pastor,  or  Pastors, 
of  the  congregation,  the  Principal  of  the  Salem  Female  Academy, 
and  three  other  brethren.  The  number  of  elected  brethren  shall 
be  increased  to  six  as  soon  as  the  Charter  has  been  amended  to  that 
effect.  They  shall  be  not  less  than  thirty  years  of  age  and  must 
have  been  members  of  the  congregation  not  less  than  five  years,. 
They  shall  serve  for  three  years,  and  shall  be  elected  in  such  a 
manner  that  the  term  of  two  will  expire  with  each  year.  The  elec- 
tion shall  take  place  on  the  first  Tuesday  in  May  of  every  year, 
and  shall  be  the  first  of  the  elections  at  that  Council  meeting.  No 
one  shall  be  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Elders  and  of  the  Board 
of  Trustees  at  the  same  time. 

b.  At  the  meetings  of  the  Board  of  Elders  the  Pastor  shall 
preside,  or  if  there  be  several,  the  Senior  Pastor.  In  case  of  the 
absence  of  the  presiding  officer,  the  members  of  the  Board  shall 
appoint  a  presiding  officer. 


c.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Board  of  Elders  : 

1.  To  watch  over  the  spiritual  and  moral  well-being  of  the 
congregation  as  a  whole. 

2.  To  regulate  the  various  meetings  for  worship. 

3.  To  determine  for  what  purposes  the  churches  and  chapels 
may  be  used. 

4.  To  maintain  the  proper  exercise  of  Church  discipline. 

5.  To  decide  upon  applications  to  Church  membership  and 
dismissals  from  the  same,  and  also  upon  names  of  persons  to  be 
dropped  or  to  be  excluded  from  the  congregation. 

6.  To  appoint  the  Superintendents  of  the  Sunday  Schools  in 
connection  with  the  congregation. 

7.  To  appoint  the  organist  and  the  two  chief  chapel  servants, 
one  of  them  being  a  brother  and  the  other  a  sister,  who,  with  the 
concurrence  of  the  Board,  shall  appoint  their  assistants. 

8.  To  assist  the  Pastor  in  the  administration  of  the  church 
music. 

9.  In  general,  to  carry  out  in  this  congregation  the  principles 
and  rules  enacted  by  the  proper  authorities  of  the  Church  of  the 
the  United  Brethren. 

d.  All  vacancies  among  the  elective  officers  of  the  Board  shall 
be  filled  by  the  remainder  of  the  Board  until  the  next  annual 
election. 

2.     The  Board  of  Trustees. 

a.  The  Board  of  Trustees  is  composed  of  six  brethren,  to  be 
elected  by  the  Congregation  Council.  They  shall  not  be  less  than 
twenty-five  years  of  age,  and  shall  have  been  communicant  mem- 
bers of  the  congregation  not  less  than  three  years.  Their  election 
shall  take  place  on  the  first  Tuesday  in  May,  and  shall  be  so  ar- 
ranged that  the  terms  of  two  of  them  shall  expire  each  year.  At 
the  first  meeting  after  each  annual  election  the  Board  shall  organize 
by  electing  a  President,  and  a  Secretary  and  Treasurer.  In  case  of 
the  absence  of  the  presiding  officer,  the  members  shall  appoint  a 
chairman  pro  tern. 

b.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  : 

1.  To  manage  and  direct  all  secular  and  financial  affairs  of 
the  congregation  and  the  various  funds  entrusted  to  its  care. 

2.  To  determine  the  salaries  of  the  pastor,  the  assistants,  and 
other  officers  and  servants  of  the  congregation. 


15 


3-  To  fix  upon  the  amount  of  Church  contributions,  and 
adopt  measures  for  the  punctual  payment  of  the  same.  In  so  doings 
they  shall  require  not  less  than  twenty-five  cents  per  month  from 
each  female  member  over  twenty-one  years  of  age,  and  not  less  than 
fifty  cents  per  month  from  each  male  member  over  twenty-one  years 
of  age,  this  sum  to  include  lovefeast  and  communion  dues.  But 
they  shall  have  the  authority  to  exonerate  members,  in  part  or 
altogether,  on  account  of  their  inability.  Members  not  residing  in 
the  community  of  Salem  shall  pay  whatever  sum  the  Trustees 
shall  consider  as  a  just  due  in  return  for  the  keeping  up  of  their 
membership. 

4.  To  pay  or  cause  to  be  paid  the  expenses  necessarily  in- 
curred by  the  Board  of  Elders  and  of  the  School  Board  in  the  dis- 
charge of  their  legitimate  sphere  of  duties. 

5.  To  have  charge  of  the  Sisters'  House  and  the  Widows' 
House  of  the  congregation. 

6.  To  take  care  of  the  churches  and  chapels  of  the  congrega- 
tion, in  connection  with  the  Advisory  Committees  appointed  by  the 
Home  church  and  of  the  several  chapels. 

7.  To  have  the  charge  and  superintendence  of  the  graveyard, 
and  the  appointment  of  persons  to  dig  graves  and  to  keep  the 
graveyard  in  proper  order. 

c.    Any  vacancies  occurring  in  the  Board  shall  be  filled  by  the 
remaining  members  until  the  next  annual  election. 

3.  The  Joint  Action  of  the  Board  of  Elders  and  of  the  Board  of 

Trustees. 

The  Board  of  Elders  and  the  Board  of  Trustees  have  each 
their  separate  sphere  of  activity  and  are  not  to  interfere  with  one 
another  in  the  performance  of  their  particular  duties  ;  one  having  * 
charge  of  the  spiritual  and  the  other  of  the  temporal  concerns  of 
the  congregation  ;  yet  it  is  desirable  that  they  should  be  on  terms 
of  friendly  intercourse,  and  even  confer  together  in  such  cases  as 
may  arise  where  each  Board  is  interested,  or  where  such  mutual 
conference  may  result  for  the  manifest  good  of  the  congregation. 
In  cases  of  disagreement  between  these  two  Boards  a  joint  meeting" 
of  both  may  be  had  and  the  subject  disposed  of  by  a  majority  of 
votes. 

4.  The  School  Board. 

a.  The  School  Board  is  composed  of  the  Pastor,  or  Pastors, 
of  the  congregation,  the  Chairman  and  also  the  Treasurer  and  Sec- 


i6 


retary  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  and  three  other  brethren  to  be 
elected  biennially  at  the  Congreg^ation  Council  convened  on  the 
first  Tuesday  in  May. 

b.  The  Board  shall  have  the  direction  and  management  of 
the  congregation-school  for  boys.  The  Pastor,  or,  if  there  be  more 
than  one,  the  Senior  Pastor  of  the  congregation,  shall  be  the  presi- 
dent of  the  Board.  In  case  of  the  absence  of  the  presiding  officer, 
the  members  of  the  Board  yhall  appoint  a  president  pro  tern. 

c.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Board, 

1.  To  appoint  or  elect  a  Principal  of  the  School  who  may, 
but  need  not  be  one  of  its  members,  who  shall  have  charge  of  the 
School,  subject  to  the  direction  of  the  School  Board. 

2.  To  appoint  a  Head  Teacher,  or  teachers,  and  assistant 
teachers. 

3.  To  fix  the  salaries  of  the  Principal  and  teachers,  and  pro- 
vide for  the  proper  maintenance  of  the  School,  to  regulate  the  price 
of  tuition,  and  to  collect  the  same. 

4.  They  shall  not,  however,  incur  any  extraordinary  expenses 
without  previous  consultation  with  the  Board  of  Trustees. 

5.  To  make  and  enforce  rules  and  regulations  for  the  proper 
government  of  the  School. 

d.  All  boys  eight  years  of  age,  or  upwards,  shall  be  admitted 
to  this  School,  whose  parents,  or  one  of  them,  are  members  of  this 
congregation,  and  who  shall  be  willing  to  submit  to  the  rules  and 
regulations  of  the  School.  The  sons  of  others,  not  members,  may 
be  admitted  on  such  terms  and  under  such  rules  and  regulations  as 
the  School  Board  may  find  expedient. 

*: 


CHAPTER  IV. 


MINISTERS. 

I.  The  Ministers  of  the  Church  of  the  United  Brethren  are 
Bishops,  Presbyters  and  Deacons. 

I.  BISHOPS. 

The  Bishops  have  been  derived  from  the  Ancient  Church  of 
the  United  Brethren,  and  have  continued  in  an  uninterrupted  line 
of  succession  within  the  Church  for  more  than  four  hundred  years. 


17 


It  is  their  exclusive  function  to  ordain  the  ministers  of  the  Church, 
and  they  are  entitled,  as  voting  members,  to  attend  the  General 
Synods  of  the  Brethren's  Unity  and  the  Provincial  Synods  of  the 
Province  in  which  they  reside.  They  have  no  diocesan  or  confer- 
•ential  authority.  Their  office  is  a  spiritual  one,  as  being  in  a  pecu- 
liar sense,  intercessors  in  the  Church  of  God,  and  charged  to  bear 
the  interests  of  the  Unity  upon  their  hearts  before  the  Lord. 

2.  PRESBYTERS. 

The  Presbyters  are  the  ministers  who  have  been  serving  in  the 
sacred  office  for  some  length  of  time,  and  who  either  have  charge 
of  a  congregation  in  the  ministry  of  the  Word,  or  are  entrusted 
with  the  direction  of  any  particular  branch  of  Church  work. 

3.  DEACONS. 

The  consecration  of  Deacons  is  the  first  degree  of  consecration 
in  the  Church.  It  entitles  to  the  exercise  of  the  ministry  of  the 
Word  and  of  the  sacraments 

2.    Pastoral  Service. 

The  Pastor,  or  Pastors,  and  other  ordained  servants  of  the 
congregation,  whether  bishops,  presbyters  or  deacons,  conduct 
their  office  according  to  the  rules  laid  down  by  the  Synods  of  the 
Church,  and  by  the  congregations  in  which  they  serve,  as  far  as 
these  rules  are  conformed  to  the  Principles  and  Regulations  of  the 
Brethren's  Unity.  ♦ 

J.  Appointment. 

The  exclusive  right  of  appointment  of  ministers  is  vested  in  the 
Provincial  Elders'  Conference.  In  case  of  vacancy,  by  death  or 
otherwise,  in  the  Pastorate,  or  other  ordained  service  of  the  con- 
gregatioH,  when  a  brother  is  appointed  by  the  Provincial  Elders' 
Conference,  the  name  of  the  brother  so  appointed  shall  be  laid  be- 
fore the  Board  of  Elders  and  then  before  the  Board  of  Trustees. 
These  Boards  shall  decide  whether  the  brother  whose  name  is  laid 
before  them  shall  be  accepted  or  not  ;  and  they  may,  in  behalf  of 
the  congregation,  propose  the  name  of  another  person,  and  may 
also  request  from  the  P.  E.  C.  the  removal  of  a  brother  in  whom 
confidence  has  been  lost. 


i8 


CHAPTER  V. 


RULES  AND  REGULATIONS. 

1.  All  resolutions  of  the  Congregation  Council,  the  Board  of 
Elders  and  the  Board  of  Trustees,  not  referring  merely  to  their 
current  business,  but  containing  permanent  regulations,  shall  be 
submitted  for  approbation  to  the  Provincial  Elders'  Conference, 
which  shall,  however,  be  at  liberty  to  withhold  its  sanction  only  in 
case  such  resolutions,  in  the  opinion  of  said  Conference,  are  at 
variance  with  the  principles  and  constitution  of  the  Church. 

2.  Persons  desiring  to  become  communicant  members  of  the 
congregation  will  receive  such  catechetical  instruction  as  their  cir- 
cumstances may  require.  When  they  have  been  thus  prepared  for 
Church  membership  their  names  shall  be  submitted  to  the  Board  of 
Elders,  who  shall  have  full  power  to  grant  or  refuse  their  applica- 
tion to  be  baptized  or  confirmed. 

3.  Persons  who  have  previously  been  full  members  of  another 
denomination,  shall  have  their  certificates  of  dismissal  from  their 
former  Church,  or,  in  case  they  cannot  obtain  them,  the  proper 
evidence  of  their  previous  membership,  laid  before  the  Board  of 
Elders.  If  their  request  to  become  members  of  this  congregation 
has  been  granted  by  the  Board  of  Elders,  they  shall  be  received  at 
a  communion  service,  with  the  right  hand  of  fellowship.  Their 
children,  under  twenty-one  years  of  age,  if  not  objectionable  in 
character,  or  not  communicants  of  some  other  Church,  shall  be 
received  into  the  privileges  of  non-communicants  in  the  congre- 
gation. 

4.  Until  the  Chapels  become  separate  Moravian  churches 
their  membership  shares  in  the  privileges  and  duties  of  the  Salem 
congregation,  and  they  are  counted  as  members  of  this  congre- 
gation. 

5.  Members  of  other  Moravian  congregations,  having  been 
regularly  dismissed  from  their  churches,  shall,  after  having  been 
accepted  by  the  Board  of  Elders,  have  their  names  announced  at 
a  communion  service  as  being  henceforth  members  of  this  con- 
gregation. 


19 


6.  Members  are  expected  to  bring  their  infant  children  to  be 
baptized  as  soon  after  their  birth  as  convenient.  Such  children 
become  incorporated,  by  the  sacrament  of  Baptism,  into  the  visible 
Church  of  Christ,  and  are  to  be  regarded  as  non-communicant 
members  of  the  Church  until  they  have  been  confirmed,  unless  they 
should,  by  their  misconduct  in  riper  years,  forfeit  these  privileges. 

7.  The  Lovefeast  regulations  are  as  follows  : 

a.  Lovefeasts  are  private  meetings,  intended  only  for  those 
whose  names  are  found  on  our  Church  catalogue,  or  are  members 
of  other  Moravian  churches. 

b.  Communicants  of  sister  denominations,  and  such  only, 
may  be  invited  to  these  occasions. 

c  In  the  case  of  a  married  couple,  of  which  one  only  is  a 
member  of  the  Church,  the  other  shall  likewise  have  the  privilege 
of  attending  the  lovefeasts. 

d.  Invitations  to  the  lovefeast  must  be  issued  through  the 
pastor,  and  according  to  his  best  judgment. 

e.  A  lovefeast  shall  annually  be  held  for  all  those  brethren 
and  sisters  who  are  regularly  engaged  in  the  service  of  the  congre- 
gation. 

f.  In  the  case  of  children  in  the  Home  Sunday  School  and 
pupils  in  the  Salem  Female  Academy,  existing  customs  of  admis- 
sion to  Lovefeasts  shall  be  observed,  as  far  as  the  Board  of  Elders 
shall  find  them  practicable  and  desirable. 

8.  The  regulations  for  Funerals  are  as  follows  : 

a.  The  chief  sexton  will  make  a  list  of  male  members  up  to 
sixty-five  years,  from  which  he  will  select  those  who  shall  assist,  in 
their  due  order,  in  carrying  the  mortal  remains  of  their  brethren 
and  sisters  to  the  church  and  graveyard. 

b.  Interments  in  the  graveyard  are  restricted  to  the  following 
classes  :  Members  of  the  congregation  ;  the  husband  or  wife  in 
cases  where  the  other  partner  is  a  member  ;  members  of  other  Mo- 
ravian churches  visiting  in  Salem,  or  such  Moravians  as  were  for- 
merly connected  with  our  congregation  ;  boarding  pupils  in  Salem 
Female  Academy,  who,  for  the  time  of  their  residence  are  consid- 
ered as  connected  with  the  congregation  ;  birth-right  members 
over  21  years  of  age,  not  communicants  in  other  denominations, 
provided  their  dues  have  been  kept  up. 

c.  Ten  dollars  shall  be  paid  for  the  privilege  of  burial  in  the 
graveyard,  in  cases  where  the  person  was  husband  or  wife  of  a 


20 


communicant  member.  This  sum  shall  be  additional  to  the  other 
expenses  which  are  customary  in  the  case  of  members. 

d.  The  tombstones  shall  be  recumbent,  and  their  size  shall 
not  exceed  20  b}«4Si^ inches. 

9.  Members  who,  for  a  considerable  time,  have  entirely  neg- 
lected the  ordinances  and  interests  of  the  congregation,  and,  with- 
out being  excused  by  the  Board  of  Trustees,  have  neglected  or 
refused  to  contribute  to  the  support  of  the  congregation,  shall  be 
regarded  by  the  Board  of  Elders  as  having  withdrawn  from  the 
congregation,  and  their  names  shall  be  omitted  from  the  list  of 
members,  and,  where  it  is  practicable,  they  shall  be  notified  of  the 
fact  through  the  Board  of  Elders. 

10.  Members  who  have  been  excluded  shall  be  duly  notified, 
and  shall,  in  all  cases,  have  the  right  of  appeal  to  the  Provincial 
Elders'  Conference. 

11.  Whenever  the  interests  of  the  congregation,  at  any  future 
time,  shall  render  it  expedient  to  alter  or  amend,  or  add  to  any  of 
these  present  rules  and  regulations,  such  alterations,  amendments, 
or  additions,  if  adopted  by  a  majority  of  two-thirds  of  all  the  votes 
cast  in  the  Congregation  Council,  shall  be  of  equal  weight  and  obli- 
gation as  though  they  had  been  literally  embodied  in  these  present 
rules  and  regulations  :  provided,  the  vote  on  such  alterations  or 
amendments  is  not  taken  in  the  same  meeting  in  which  they  were 
introduced,  but  at  some  subsequent  meeting  of  the  Congregation 
Council  expressly  convened  for  that  purpose  ;  diVid,  provided further, 
that  all  such  proposed  alterations  and  amendments  have  obtained 
the  sanction  of  the  Provincial  Elders'  Conference. 


21 


THE  CHARTER  OF  SALEM  CON'q'REQATION. 


TO  INCORPORATE  THE  MEMBERS  OF  THE  CONGREGATION  OF 
UNITED  BRETHREN  OF  SALEM  AND  ITS  VICINITY. 

Section  i.  The  General  Assembly  of  North  Carolifia  do  enact  : 
That  the  members  of  the  Congregation  of  United  Brethren,  com- 
monly called  Moravians,  of  the  town  of  Salem  and  its  vicinity,  be 
and  the  same  are  hereby  created  and  erected  into  one  body  politic 
and  corporate  in  deed  and  in  law,  by  the  name,  style  and  title  of 
"  The  Congregation  of  United  Brethren  of  Salem  and  its  vicinity." 

Sec.  2.  That  the  said  corporation  by  the  same  name,  style  and 
title  shall  have  perpetual  succession,  and  be  able  to  sue  and  be  sued, 
to  plead  and  be  impleaded  in  all  courts  of  law  and  elsewhere,  and 
shall  be  able  and  capable  in  law  and  equity  to  take,  purchase,  hold 
and  receive  to  them  and  their  successors  in  trust  for,  and  also  to 
the  use  of  said  congregation,  any  lands,  tenements,  goods  and  chat- 
tels of  whatsoever  kind,  nature  or  quality,  real,  personal  or  mixed, 
which  are  now,  or  shall,  or  may  at  any  time  hereafter  become  the 
property  of  said  congregation  or  body  politic  by  purchase,  gift 
grant,  bargain,  sale,  conveyance,  devise,  bequest  or  otherwise,  from 
any  person  or  persons  whomsoever,  capable  of  making  the  same, 
and  the  same  to  grant,  bargain,  sell,  improve  or  dispose  of  for  the 
use  and  benefit  of  the  said  congregation  :  Provided,  That  it  shall 
not  be  lawful  for  said  corporation  to  hold  and  enjoy  at  any  time 
more  than  sixteen  hundred  acres  of  land,  except  such  lands  as  shall 
be  purchased  at  sales,  where  the  same  may  be  necessary  to  secure 
any  debt  due  to  said  congregation,  nor  to  appropriate  any  of  the 
surplus  funds  of  said  corporation  to  any  other  than  charitable,  or 
religious,  or  such  other  purposes  as  shall  be  expressly  specified  in 
this  act. 

Sec.  3.  No  misnomer  of  said  corporation,  or  their  successors, 
shall  defeat  or  annul  any  gift,  grant,  devise  or  bequest  to  or  from 
said  corporation  :  Provided,  The  intent  of  the  party  or  parties  shall 
sufficiently  appear  upon  the  face  of  the  gift,  grant,  will  or  other 
writing,  whereby  any  estate  or  interest  was  intended  to  pass  to  or 
from  the  said  corporation. 

Sec.  4.  The  secular  business  of  said  corporation  shall  be  con- 
ducted by  six  trustees,  of  whom  four  shall  be  a  quorum,  and  who 
shall  choose  a  President,  and  may  appoint  a  Secretary  and  a  Treas- 
urer, to  serve  for  the  ensuing  year,  either  from  among  themselves, 
or  from  among  the  members  of  the  said  congregation  qualified  to 
be  elected  as  trustees,  according  to  the  fifth  section  of  this  act.  The 


22 


Secretary  shall  keep  true  and  correct  minutes  of  the  acts  and  pro- 
ceedings of  the  Board  of  Trustees  ;  and  the  Treasurer  shall  receive, 
disburse  and  account  for  all  moneys  coming  into  his  hands,  belong- 
ing to  the  said  corporation,  and  shall,  if  required  by  the  said  trus- 
tees, give  security  for  the  faithful  performance  of  the  trust  reposed 
in  him,  and  shall  have  his  accounts  annually  settled  by  the  trustees, 
to  be  laid  before  the  Congregation  at  a  general  meeting.  The  said 
trustees  may  likewise  appoint  such  other  officers,  as  they  may  from 
time  to  time  deem  necessary,  for  the  proper  management  of  the 
secular  affairs  of  the  Congregation,  and  they  may  allow  such  com- 
pensation to  all  officers  appointed  by  them  for  the  services  rendered 
as  they  may  deem  just  and  reasonable  ;  and  the  said  trustees  may 
also  at  any  time  remove  any  of  the  officers  appointed  by  them,  and 
appoint  others  to  supply  their  places  when,  in  their  opinion,  the 
interests  of  the  Congregation  require  it.  The  said  Trustees  shall 
also  fix  upon  the  amount  of  contribution,  to  be  paid  regularly, 
yearly,  half-yearly,  or  quarterly,  by  every  member  of  the  Congre- 
gation, of  twenty-one  years  of  age  and  upwards,  at  the  rate  of  not 
less  than  fifty  cents  and  not  more  than  ten  dollars  annually  from 
any  one  member,  and  collect  the  same  ;  and  shall  have  power  to 
exonerate  members  on  account  of  their  disability  to  pay,  if  they 
deem  it  just  and  expedient  ;  and  they  shall  annually  enquire,  ascer- 
tain and  report  to  the  Board  of  Elders,  whether  any  member  or 
members  have  failed  or  refused  to  pay  their  contribution  within  the 
current  year,  on  which  report  the  Board  of  Elders  shall  take  such 
action,  and  make  such  order  as  shall  by  them  b*e  deemed  expedient 
and  right. 

Sec.  5.  The  following  named  persons  shall  fill  the  said  office  of 
Trustees  until  others  be  elected,  as  hereinafter  provided,  namely  : 
J.  W.  Hunter  and  Henry  W.  Fries,  to  serve  till  the  first  Tuesday 
of  May,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  seventy-six  ;  Edward  T. 
Blum  and  Augustus  F.  Pfohl,  to  serve  till  the  first  Tuesday  of  May, 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  seventy-five,  and  John  D.  Siewers 
and  John  G.  Sides,  to  serve  till  the  first  Tuesday  of  May,  one  thou- 
sand eight  hundred  and  seventy-four,  on  which  day,  and  on  the 
same  day  annually,  thereafter,  the  members  of  the  said  congrega- 
tion, qualified  to  vote  by  the  seventh  section  of  this  act,  shall  elect 
from  their  body  two  persons  as  Trustees  for  the  term  of  three  years, 
in  place  of  those  whose  term  shall  have  expired  :  Provided,  That  no 
person  shall  be  eligible  as  a  Trustee,  who  is  not  at  the  time  of  his 
election,  a  citizen  of  this  State,  and  shall  not  have  attained  to  the 
age  of  twenty-five  years,  and  who  shall  not  have  been  at  least  three 
years  preceding  his  election,  a  communicant  member  of  this  church, 
and  shall  not  have  paid  his  annual  stated  contribution,  if  any  was 
collected,  within  one  year  next  preceding  his  election,  according  to 
his  ability  ;  nor  shall  any  person  hold  and  exercise  the  office  of  a 
Trustee  after  he  shall  have  ceased  to  be  a  member  of  the  said  Congre- 
gation ;  and  in  case  of  vacancy  by  death,  resignation,  disability,  le- 
fusal  or  neglect  to  serve  or  otherwise,  the  vacancy  or  vacancies  shall 
be  supplied  by  the  remaining  Trustees  until  the  next  annual  elections. 


23 


Sec.  6.  If  the  Congregation  fail  on  the  day  of  the  annual  elec- 
tion to  elect  new  members,  as  provided,  this  corporation  shall  noi 
be  dissolved,  but  the  outgoing  members  shall  hold  over  until 
their  successors  are  elected  at  a  meeting  called,  as  provided  for  in 
section  seventh. 

Sec.  7.  Every  male  communicant  member  of  said  Congregation 
who  shall  have  attained  the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  and  shall  have 
paid,  within  one  year,  his  stated  contribution  toward  the  discharge 
of  the  yearly  expenses  of  the  Congregation,  if  any  was  collected, 
unless  he  became  twenty-one  years  of  age  after  any  contribution 
was  due  ;  and  also  all  ordained  ministers  being  full  members  of  this 
•  Congregation,  and  no  other,  shall  be  entitled  to  vote  at  the  elec- 
tions of  said  Congregation,  or  at  any  meeting  of  the  said  Congre- 
gation ;  and  all  elections  shall  be  by  ballot.  All  notices  of  elections 
and  meetings  of  the  Congregation  shall  be  published  from  the  pulpit 
or  desk  on  an  occasion  of  public  worship,  or  in  such  other  way  as 
the  Board  of  Elders  shall  direct  ;  and  in  all  cases  a  majority  of  the 
duly  qualified  voters  shall  govern  at  meetings  of  the  Congregation  ; 
and  all  meetings  of  the  congregation  shall,  in  the  first  place,  be 
called  and  ordered  by  the  Board  of  Elders  ;  and  upon  application 
of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  or  ten  or  more  voting  members  of  the 
Congregation,  the  Board  of  Elders  shall  call  a  meeting. 

Sec.  8.  The  Board  of  Elders  shall  be  composed  of  the  Minister 
or  Ministers  of  the  congregation,  the  President  of  Salem  F^emale 
Academy,  and  three  Elders,  a  majority  of  whom  shall  constitute  a 
quorum,  of  which  Board  the  senior  minister  or  pastor  shall  be  Pres- 
ident ;  and  the  said  members  of  the  Board  of  Elders  shall  choose 
from  their  number  a  Secretary  ;  and  in  the  absence  of  the  President, 
a  chairman  pro  tern.  Besides  the  above  named  official  members  of 
the  Board  of  Elders,  the  following  named  persons  shall  fill  the  said 
office  of  Elders,  until  others  be  elected,  as  hereinafter  provided,  viz  : 
Jacob  L.  Fulkerson  to  serve  until  the  first  Tuesday  of  May,  one 
,  thousand  eight  hundred  and  seventy-six  ;  Edward  W.  Lineback,  to 
serve  until  the  first  Tuesday  of  May,  one  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  seventy-five  ;  and  J.  Nathaniel  Blum,  to  serve  until  the  first 
Tuesday  of  May,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  seventy-four,  on 
which  day,  and  on  the  same  day  annually  thereafter,  the  members 
of  the  said  congregation,  qualified  to  vote  by  the  seventh  section  of 
this  act,  shall  elect  from  their  body  one  person  as  Elder  for  the  term 
of  three  years,  in  the  place  of  the  one  whose  term  shall  have  ex- 
pired. The  election  for  Elders  are  to  be  held  at  the  same  time  and 
place,  and  in  the  same  manner  provided  for  and  directed  in  section 
5th  of  this  act,  for  the  election  of  Trustees.  If  the  congregation 
fail,  on  the  day  of  the  annual  election,  to  elect  a  new  member,  as 
provided,  the  outgoing  member  shall  hold  over  until  his  successor 
is  elected  at  a  meeting  called,  as  provided  for  in  section  seventh  : 
Provided,  that  nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  so  construed  as  to 
permit  the  same  person  serving  as  Trustee  and  Elder  at  the  same 
time,  and  Provided  further,  that  in  case  of  vacancy  by  death,  or 


24 


otherwsc,  among  the  said  Elders  as  elected,  the  remaining  mem- 
bers of  the  Board  of  Elders  may  supply  the  vacancy  until  the  next 
election  from  the  members  duly  qualified  ;  and  provided  further, 
that  no  one  shall  be  elected  an  Elder  who  is  not  thirty  or  more 
years  of  age,  and  a  member  of  the  Moravian  Church  of  five  years' 
standing,  and  himself  qualified  to  vote  according  to  the  seventh  sec- 
tion of  this  act. 

Sec.  9.  No  person  or  persons  shall  be  minister  or  ministers,  or 
assistant  minister  or  assistant  ministers  of  this  congregation,  or  shall 
be  allowed  to  act  as  such,  who  shall  not  have  been  from  time  to 
time  duly  appointed  by  the  proper  authorities,  according  to  the 
recognized  rules  and  principles  of  the  Church  of  the  United  Breth- 
ren and  the  Southern  District  of  said  Church  in  the  United  States 
of  America  ;  nor  shall  any  minister  or  assistant  minister  continue 
to  officiate  any  longer  in  this  congregation,  unless  with  the  consent 
of  said  authorities,  after  his  appointment  shall  have  been  revoked 
by  the  said  duly  constituted  authorities  of  the  said  Church  of  United 
Brethren  ;  but  whenever,  in  case  of  a  vacancy  by  death  or  other- 
wise, in  the  pastoral  offices  of  the  congregation,  a  person  duly  qual- 
ified has  been  appointed  by  the  proper  authorities  of  the  Church  of 
the  United  Brethren  as  above  directed,  the  name  of  the  person  so 
appointed  shall  be  by  the  proper  authorities  laid  before  the  Board 
of  Elders,  and  then  before  the  Board  of  Trustees,  and  these  Boards 
shall  decide  whether  the  person  whose  name  is  laid  before  them 
shall  be  accepted  or  not  ;  and  the  said  Trustees  and  their  succes- 
sors shall  at  all  times  and  forever  hereafter  make  suitable  provisions 
for  a  decent  and  adequate  salary  of  the  ministers  or  assistant  minis- 
ters duly  appointed  as  hereinbefore  directed,  and  shall  in  no  case 
prevent  the  said  ministers  or  assistant  ministers,  in  any  meeting- 
house or  houses  of  worship  belonging  to  said  congregation,  from 
expounding  and  explaining  God's  Holy  Word,  nor  from  executing 
the  discipline  of  the  Church  of  the  United  Brethren  and  adminis- 
tering the  sacraments  therein,  according  to  the  doctrine  and  disci- 
pline of  the  said  Church  of  the  United  Brethren  in  the  United  States 
of  America. 

Sec.  10.  The  said  Board  of  Elders  shall  have  full  power  and 
authority  at  all  times  to  ordain  and  establish  such  by-laws,  ordi- 
nances, rules  and  regulations  as  shall  be  necessary  and  proper  for 
their  own  government ,  and  said  Board  shall  be  the  executive  body, 
to  carry  out  the  principles  and  rules  now  in  force  or  which  may  from 
time  to  time  be  enacted  by  the  proper  authorities  of  the  Church  of 
the  United  Brethren  in  the  United  States  of  America,  for  regulatim^ 
the  discipline  of  the  members  of  the  congregation  and  for  promot- 
ing religion  in  the  same  :  Provided,  that  all  the  acts  of  the  said 
Board  of  Elders  shall  be  conformable  to  and  in  no  wise  inconsistent 
with  the  principles  and  constitution  of  the  Church  of  the  United 
Brethren  in  the  United  States  of  America  :  And  provided  further, 
that  nothing  in  this  act  shall  be  so  construed  as  to  prevent  the  said 
Board  of  Elders  from  expelling  any  member  according  to  the  rules 
and  regulations  of  the  Church  of  United  Brethren  of  the  United 


25 


States  of  America,  and  by  such  expulsion  depriving  him  or  her  of 
all  the  rights  and  privileges  hereby  granted,  subject,  nevertheless, 
to  an  appeal  to  the  Board  of  Brethren,  who,  according  to  the  rules 
and  constitution  of  the  Southern  District  of  the  Church  of  the 
United  Brethren  in  the  United  States  of  America,  are  or  may  be 
appointed  to  superintend  the  general  concerns  of  the  said  District 
of  the  Church. 

Sec.  II.  The  said  Trustees  and  their  successors  shall  have  the 
control  over  and  management  of  all  the  secular  and  pecuniary  af- 
fairs of  said  congregation  ;  the  care  of  the  house  or  houses  of  wor- 
ship, parsonage  or  parsonages,  school  house  or  school  houses,  grave- 
yard, and  all  other  church  property,  now  or  hereafter  belonging  to 
the  said  congregation,  and  all  other  temporal  concerns  and  busi- 
ness of  the  congregation,  and  they  and  their  successors  shall  have 
full  power  to  enact  and  enforce  such  by-laws  and  ordinances  as  they 
shall  think  proper  for  their  own  government,  and  for  the  regulation 
and  transaction  of  the  secular  business  of  the  congregation,  and 
also  to  make,  have  and  to  use  a  common  seal,  and  the  same  to 
break,  alter  and  renew  at  pleasure,  and  all  bonds,  notes,  judgments 
and  mortgages  to  be  given,  made  and  executed,  and  all  deeds  for 
any  real  estate  sold  at  any  time,  shall  be  made,  signed,  sealed,  exe- 
cuted and  delivered  by  the  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  on 
order  of  said  board  ;  and  the  said  Trustees  and  their  successors 
shall  have  full  power  to  sell  and  make  title  as  above  directed  to  all 
lots  or  parcels  of  land  sold  by  them  :  Provided,  That  a  majority  of 
the  qualified  voters  of  said  congregation  present  at  a  general  meet- 
ing, or  special  meeting  called  for  the  purpose,  have  given  their 
assent  to  such  sale  ;  and  the  said  Trustees  and  their  successors  shall 
not  dispose  of,  alien,  sell,  or  in  any  way  encumber  the  other  real 
estate  belonging  to  the  said  congregation,  except  in  such  cases  as 
herein  specified,  nor  contract  any  debt  or  debts  exceeding  the  sum 
of  one  thousand  dollars  without  the  assent  and  concurrence  of  the 
majority  of  the  qualified  voters  of  the  said  congregation  present  at 
a  meeting  to  be  held  for  that  purpose  :  Ayid  provided  further,  That 
said  rules,  b5''-laws  and  ordinances,  and  all  the  acts  of  the  said 
Trustees,  framed  and  enacted  and  promulgated,  shall  not  be  con- 
trary to  this  charter,  nor  the  constitution  and  laws  of  this  State,  or 
of  the  United  States,  and  shall  be  in  conformity  to  the  rules  and 
principles  of  the  Church  of  the  United  Brethren  in  the  United 
States  of  America,  and  not  in  any  wise  inconsistent  with  the  same. 

Sec.  12.  The  rents,  profits  and  interests  of  the  real,  personal 
and  mixed  estate  of  the  said  congregation  and  corporation,  shall, 
by  the  said  trustees  and  their  successors,  from  time  to  time,  be  ap- 
plied and  used  for  the  maintenance  and  support  of  the  gospel  min- 
istry in  said  congregation,  for  maintaining  and  repairing  their 
church  or  churches,  parsonage  houses,  school  houses,  burial 
grounds,  or  other  houses  and  buildings,  which  now  do,  or  here- 
after shall  belong  to  the  said  congregation  and  corporation,  and 
for  educational,  home  and  foreign  missionary,  or  such  other  pious 


26 


and  charitable  uses  as  shall  be  thought  proper  by  the  said  trustees 
and  their  successors,  or  a  quorum  of  them,  or  as  may  be  specified 
in  this  act. 

Sec.  13.  No  enumeration  of  powers,  privileges  and  duties 
herein  contained,  shall  be  so  construed  as  to  exclude  others  not 
enumerated,  which  are  necessary  to  the  proper  fulfillment  of  the 
design  and  purpose  of  this  act,  and  not  inconsistent  with  its  express 
provisions  and  limitations. 

Sec.  14.  This  act  shall  be  in  force  from  and  after  its  ratifi- 
cation. 

In  General  Assembly  read  three  times  on  this  31st  day  of  Jan- 
uary, A.  D.  1874. 

J.  L.  ROBESON, 
Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives 
C.  H.  BROGDEN, 
Preside?it  of  the  Senate. 


STATE  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA, 

OFFICE  OF  SECRETARY  OF  STATE, 

Raleigh,  N.  C,  May  21st,  1874. 

I,  William  H.  Howerton,  Secretary  of  State,  hereby  certify 
that  the  foregoing  is  a  true  copy  from  the  original  act  on  file  in  this 
-ofiice. 

Wm.  H.  Howerton,  Secretary. 


APPENDIX. 


APPENDIX  I. 


BRIEF  OUTLINE  HISTORY  OF  THE  MORAVIAN  CHURCH. 

Moravia  and  Bohemia,  once  an  independent  kingdom,  now  provinces 
of  the  Austrian  Empire,  were  Christianized  in  the  9th  century  by  the  two 
Greek  missionaries,  Cyril  and  Methodius.  Gradually,  however,  the  Church 
in  this  country  came  under  the  control  of  the  Roman  hierarchy. 

The  reformer,  John  Hus,  who,  like  a  number  of  his  earnest  predeces- 
sors, sought  to  bring  the  National  Church  back  to  the  Scriptural  standard, 
was  burned  to  death  at  Constance  on  July  6th,  1415. 

After  years  of  bloody  war  between  Bohemia  and  Germany,  the  more 
spiritual  minded  of  the  followers  of  John  Hus,  in  1457,  banded  themselves 
together,  in  the  retired  barony  of  Lititz,  in  North-east  Bohemia,  to  lead  a 
united  Christian  life. 

In  1467,  their  separation  from  the  National  Church  was  consummated 
by  the  decree  of  the  Synod  of  Lhota  and  by  the  consecration  of  three 
bishops  at  the  hands  of  Stephen  and  his  Waldensian  colleague,  the  last 
of  an  Austrian  Waldensian  line  created  at  the  Council  of  Basle,  in  1434. 
The  Church  of  the  **  United  Brethren  "  now  spread  widely  in  Bohemia 
and  Moravia. 

In  1505,  the  first  Moravian  Hymn  Book  and  Catechism  were  printed. 
In  1512,  the  Brethren  entered  into  relations  with  Luther,  and  later,  into 
correspondence  with  the  Swiss  reformers.  In  1549,  the  first  churches  were 
founded  in  Poland,  and  the  U7iitas  Fratrum  henceforth  consisted  of  three 
flourishing  divisions  in  Bohemia,  Moravia  and  Poland.  From  1579  to  1593, 
the  whole  Bible  was  translated  from  the  original  into  the  Bohemian.  It  is 
called  "The  Kraliz  Bible."  In  1616,  the  General  Synod  of  the  Unitas 
Fratrum  at  Zerawitz  adopted  the  Ratio  Disciplina,  which  gives  an  account 
of  the  life  and  arrangements  of  the  Ancient  Brethren's  Unity,  of  highest 
value  to  their  descendants. 

Alter  many  persecutions,  successfully  borne,  the  Church  of  the  United 
Brethren  was  utterly  rooted  out  by  Ferdinand  of  Austria,  during  the 
Thirty  Years'  War.  The  leaders  perished  on  the  scaffold,  and  more  than 
30,000  families  were  exiled  from  Bohemia  and  Moravia.  In  Poland  the 
Brethren  were  gradually  amalgamated  with  the  Reformed  Church. 

Bishop  John  Amos  Comenius,  the  famous  educator,  by  his  personal 
influence,  his  writings,  and  his  care  to  maintain  the  episcopacy,  preserved 
the  Unitas  Fratrum  from  utter  extinction. 

A  revival  among  the  descendants  of  the  Brethren  in  several  Moravian 
villages,  under  the  preaching  of  Christian  David,  from  1722  to  1727,  led  to 


28 


the  flight  of  a  number  of  them  into  Saxony.  They  were  kindly  received 
by  the  Count  Nicholas  Louis  Von  Zinzendorf  on  his  estates,  and  there 
founded  the  town  of  Herrnhut.  On  August  13th,  1727,  they  were  so  pow- 
erfully blessed  by  an  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Ghost  that  in  a  few  years 
their  testimony  for  Christ  was  spread  into  distant  parts  of  the  world. 

Their  missions  among  the  heathen  commenced  in  1732,  when  Leonard 
Dober  and  David  Nitschman  started  on  foot,  each  with  six  dollars  in  his 
pocket,  and  resolved,  if  necessary,  to  be  sold  as  slaves  in  order  to  bring 
the  Gospel  to  the  heathen  negroes  on  the  Island  of  St.  Thomas. 

It  having  been  agreed,  contrary  to  the  original  wishes  of  Count  Zin- 
zendorf, that  the  Moravians  should  not  become  Lutherans,  but  continue 
their  separate  Church  organization,  the  episcopate  was  transferred  from 
the  Ancient  to  the  Modern  Moravian  Church  by  Bishop  Daniel  Ernst 
Jablonsky  and  Christian  Sitkovius  at  Berlin  on  March  13th,  1735.  The  first 
Bishop  in  the  new  line  was  David  Nitschman,  one  of  the  Moravian  exiles^ 
On  May  12th,  1749,  the  Moravian  episcopate  was  recognized  by  Act  of 
British  Parliament. 

The  Moravian  Church  in  America  commenced  with  the  arrival  of  ten 
Moravian  exilf  s  in  Savannah,  Ga.,  April  17th,  1734,  under  the  leadership 
of  Spangenberg.  The  several  voyages  to  Savannah  led  to  the  acquaint- 
ance of  the  Wesleys  with  the  Moravians.  In  1741,  the  chief  Northern  set- 
tlement of  Moravians  was  commenced  at  Bethlehem,  Pa.,  and  in  1766,  the 
chief  Southern  settlement  at  Salem,  North  Carolina. 

The  Moravian  Church  throughout  the  world  is  governed  by  a  General 
Synod,  which  meets  once  in  ten  years  in  Herrnhut,  Saxony.  In  the  inter- 
vals between  General  Synods,  the  Central  Board,  called  the  Unity's  De- 
partment, residing  at  Berthelsdorf,  near  Herrnhut,  conducts  the  general 
affairs  of  the  Church.  The  separate  Provinces,  with  their  Synods,  are 
entirely  independent  in  the  administration  of  their  own  affairs. 

In  the  United  States  there  are  two  Provinces,  one  in  the  North  and 
one  in  the  South,  each  with  its  own  Provincial  Synod  and  its  own  Provin- 
cial Elders'  Conference. 

At  the  end  of  1892  there  were  8,179  Moravians  on  the  Continent  of 
Europe  ;  5,660  in  Great  Britain,  and  18,930  in  the  United  States :  a  total  of 
32,759. 

The  following  brethren  have  served  as  Bishops  of  the  Unity  in  the 
Southern  District : 

1.  JOHN  MARTIN  GRAFF— Consecrated  1773,  died  1782. 

2.  JOHN  DANIEL  KOEHLER,  "  1790,  1800. 

3.  CHARLES  F.  REICHEL,  "  1801,  transferred  to  Penna.,  1811. 

4.  JOHN  HERBST.  "  1811,  died  1812. 

5.  JACOB  VAN  VLECK,  "  1815,  retired  1822. 

6.  ANDREW  BENADE,  "  1822,  transferred  to  Penna.  1829. 

7.  JOHN  C.  BECHLER,  "  1835,        "         "  Europe,  1836. 

8.  WILLIAM  H.  VAN  VLECK,  "  1836,        "         "  Penna.,  1849. 

9.  JOHN  G.  HERMAN,  "  1846,  died  1854. 
TO.  GEORGE  F.  BAHNSON,  "  i860,   "  1869. 

11.  EMIL  A.  DE  SCHWEINITZ,         "        1874.    '  1879. 

12.  EDWARD  RONDTHALER,         "  1891. 


29 


APPENDIX  11. 


MORAVIAN  MISSIONS. 

The  Moravian  Church  is  divided  into  the  German,  the  British,  and  the 
American  Province  (Northern  and  Southern  Districts),  but  it  conducts  its 
mission-work  among  the  heathen  as  a  Unity,  under  the  direction  of  the 
Mission  Board  at  Berthelsdorf,  Saxony. 

The  Moravians  were  not  the  first  to  send  out  missionaries,  but  they 
were  the  first  Protestants  who  did  this  as  a  Church,  and  are  still  the  only 
Church  with  whom  the  evangelization  of  the  heathen  is  the  chief  concern, 

The  first  Moravian  missionaries,  Leonard  Dober  and  David  Nitschman. 
were  sent  to  the  negroes  of  the  Danish  Island  of  St.  Thomas  in  1732, 
Gradually  the  work  was  extended  to  many  of  the  West  India  Inlands.  The 
Mission  in  Greenland  was  commenced  in  1733.  The  first  missionary  to 
the  North  American  Indians  began  his  work  among  the  Mohicans  in  1740. 
The  Labrador  Mission  dates  Irom  1770.  The  first  negro  converts  of  the 
Surinam  Mission  were  baptized  in  1776.  In  1792  the  South  African  Mis- 
sion, from  which  Bro.  George  Schmidt  had  been  driven  away  by  the  Co- 
lonial Government,  was  renewed,  and  has  been  extending  to  this  day. 

In  the  year  1849,  both  the  Central  American  (Mosquito  Coast)  and  the 
Australian  Missions  were  commenced. 

The  Himalayan  Mission,  on  the  borders  of  Thibet,  which  is  its  ultimate 
aim,  was  undertaken  in  1853. 

In  1867  the  Church  took  charge  of  a  Leper  Hospital  at  Jerusalem. 

In  1878  the  Moravians  were  invited  to  undertake  a  work  in  Demerara. 

In  1885  the  Alaskan  Mission  was  commenced. 

In  1891  the  first  three  brethren  proceeded  to  East  Central  Africa  to 
found  a  mission  station  north  of  Lake  Nyassa. 

The  Moravian  Missions  have  mostly  been  undertaken  among  the  low- 
est of  the  heathen.  The  Greenlander,  the  Hottentot,  the  degraded  Aus- 
tralian, the  loathsome  leper,  have  received  the  Gospel  from  the  lips  of  the 
Moravian  missionary.  The  success  of  the  Gospel  among  these  lowliest 
and  most  neglected  of  the  children  of  earth  has  often  been  very  wonderful. 
The  Moravian  story  of  Missions  is  filled  with  the  triumphs  of  Christ's  grace. 

In  1891,  there  were  21  Moravian  Mission  Provinces;  120  Stations;  309 
Missionaries;  2014  Native  Helpers  of  various  grades;  31,380  Communi- 
cants, and  a  Lotal  of  90,544. 

The  present  annual  expense  of  the  Moravian  Missions  is  about  1360,000. 
It  is  a  very  great  outlay  for  a  small  Church,  and  the  assistance  of  all  friends 
of  the  Kingdom  of  God  is  very  welcome.  Contributions  can  be  sent  to 
Rev.  Robert  deSchweinitz,  Mission  Agent  at  Bethlehem,  Penna.,  or  to 
Mr.  Iames  T.  Lineback,  Mission  Agent  at  Salem,  N.  C. 


30 


APPENDIX  III. 


THE  SOUTHERN  DISTRICT. 

In  1753,  Count  Zinzendorf  purchased  a  tract  of  nearly  one  hundred 
thousand  acres,  in  Western  North  Carolina,  as  the  home  of  a  Moravian 
colony.  This  tract  was  called  "Wachovia,"  from  the  name  of  an  estate 
in  Austria  belonging  to  the  Zinzendorf  family. 

The  first  settlers  were  a  band  of  twelve  young  men  from  Bethlehem, 
Penna.  After  a  toilsome  journey  of  nearly  six  weeks,  they  found,  on 
reaching  the  surveyed  tract,  a  deserted  cabin.  Here  they  rested,  on 
Nov.  17th,  1753,  and,  calling  the  place  Bethabara,  commenced  the  Lord's 
work  in  the  wilderness.  Gradually  other  Moravian  emigrants  came,  and 
neighboring  settlers  were  also  gathered  under  the  preaching *of  the  Word. 

On  June  12th,  1759,  the  site  of  Bethania  was  selected  by  Bishop  Span- 
genberg,  and  in  1760  Bro.  David  Bishop  became  the  first  minister  of  this 
congregation. 

In  1766  the  town  of  Salem  was  commenced,  and  in  1772  it  was  made 
the  centre  of  the  Moravian  colony  in  Wachovia. 

On  November  26th,  1758,  the  first  sermon  in  what  is  known  as  Fried- 
berg,  was  held  ny  Bro.  L.  G.  Backhoff,  at  the  house  of  Adam  Spach.  On 
March  nth,  1759,  a  church  building  was  consecrated,  and  in  1772  the  con- 
gregation of  Friedberg  was  formally  constituted. 

Friedland  was  commenced,  in  1770,  with  German  settlers  from  the 
State  of  Maine.  In  1775  the  church  was  consecrated,  and  Bro.  Tycho 
Nissen  became  pastor  of  the  congregation. 

Meetings  commenced  in  the  neighborhood  of  Hope  as  early  as  1758. 
On  March  28th,  1780,  the  church,  which  is  still  standing,  was  consecrated 
and  Bro.  John  C.  Fritz  became  the  pastor.    It  was,  at  the  time,  the  only 
English  congregation  in  the  District. 

In  1801  a  Mission  was  commenced  among  the  Cherokees  in  the  North- 
ern part  of  Georgia.  After  the  removal  of  the  tribe  to  the  Indian  Terri- 
tory the  work  was  continued.  It  now  consists  of  the  two  stations.  Wood- 
mount  and  Spring  Place,  with  their  out-stations,  which,  in  1892,  were  trans- 
ferred to  the  Northern  Moravian  Church  on  account  of  greater  convenience 
of  administration. 

On  May  24th,  1822,  the  Colored  Moravian  Church  was  instituted,  which 
is  still  in  a  flourishing  condition. 

In  the  year  1839,  a  devoted  layman,  Bro.  Zevely,  began  to  visit  the 
destitute  Blue  Ridge  country,  in  Virginia.  As  a  result  of  his  work  the 
Mount  Bethel  station  was  constituted  into  a  congregation  on  November 
25th,  1852. 

In  1830  the  town  of  Hope  was  laid  out  in  Indiana,  and  in  1846  the  town 
of  West  Salem  in  Illinois,  both  of  which  were  afterwards,  for  convenience, 
transferred  to  the  Northern  Board. 

In  1846  the  congregation  of  New  Philadelphia  was  organized.  The 
church  at  this  place  was  dedicated  on  Oct.  3rst,  and  Nov.  ist,  1851. 


31 


In  1868  the  church  at  Kernersville  was  built  by  members  of  the  Fried- 
land  congregation  residing  there,  and  in  1870  Bro.  Isaac  Prince  became 
the  first  minister  of  the  congregation. 

In  1880  the  congregation  at  Providence  was  organized.  The  church 
was  dedicated  on  July  i6th,  1881. 

In  1S87  the  congregation  at  Oak  Grove  was  commenced,  and  the 
church  at  that  place  was  dedicated  on  May  14th,  1888. 

Originally  the  affairs  of  the  Southern  District  were  directed  from  Beth- 
lehem, Penna.,  but,  in  1768,  Bro.  Frederick  William  Marshall  moved  to- 
Wachovia  in  order  to  act  as  the  agent  of  the  Unity  in  this  District.  In 
1785  during  the  visit  of  Bishop  John  Watteville,  the  son-in-law  of  Count 
Zinzendorf,  the  District  was  formally  organized  into  a  province  and  a  Pro- 
vincial Elders'  Conference  was  instituted  for  the  South.  A  monthly  meet- 
ing of  the  ministers  had  already  begun  on  Sept.  15th,  1770. 

In  1857,  by  the  re-arrangement  of  the  government  of  the  Unity  at  the 
General  Synod  of  that  year,  the  supreme  control  of  the  local  affairs  of  the 
Southern  Church  was  fully  vested  in  the  Provincial  Synod. 

In  1877  the  Provincial  Elders'  Conference  was  incorporated  under  the 
laws  of  the  State  of  North  Carolina,  and  the  remaining  prc>perty  of  the 
Unity  in  this  District  was  purchased  in  behalf  of  the  Southern  District,  in 
order  to  form  the  chief  asset  in  its  new  Sustentation  Fund. 

After  a  union  with  the  Northern  District  had  been  carefully  consid- 
ered for  a  number  of  years,  the  project  was  finally  abandoned  by  mutual 
consent.  From  January  22d  to  25th,  1884,  the  Provincial  Synod  met  for 
the  revision  of  the  Constitution  of  the  Southern  Moravian  Church,  under 
which  revised  Constitution  it  is  now  being  administered. 


APPENDIX  IV. 


THE  SALEM  CONGREGATION. 

The  name  "  Salem  "  was  given  to  the  projected  central  settlement  in 
Wachovia  by  Count  Zinzendorf,  shortly  before  his  death  in  1760.  The  site 
of  the  town  was  selected  on  February  14th,  1765.  The  watchword  of  the 
Moravian  Church  for  that  day  was  very  encouraging:  "Let  thine  eyes  be 
opened  toward  this  house  night  and  day,  even  toward  the  place  of  which 
thou  hast  said,  My  name  shall  be  there."    I  Kings  viii.,  29. 

The  first  log  hut  was  begun  on  January  6th,  1766,  and  was  occupied  by 
eight  brethren  from  Bethabara  on  February  19th  of  the  same  year.  This 
house,  on  Salt  Street,  afterwards  a  potter's  shop,  is  still  standing.  The 
first  church  of  Salem,  called  the  "  Gemeinhaus,"  was  dedicated  on  No- 
vember 13th,  1771.  Its  site  is  now  occupied  by  the  Main  Hall  of  Salem 
Female  Academy.  In  1772  the  congregation  was  separated  from  that  of 
Bethabara,  and  became  the  seat  of  superintendence  for  the  District. 


32 


On  May  31st,  1791,  Salem  was  visited  by  President  George  Washington. 
He  was  very  favorably  impressed  with  the  arrangements  of  the  town,  and 
was  especially  interested  in  the  water-works.  In  this  respect  and  in  others 
the  settlers  of  Salem  were  very  enterprising.  In  1773  the  first  Fire  Regu- 
lations were  made.  The  water-works  were  built  in  1778.  In  1772  the  arri- 
val of  the  bell,  weighing  2758  pounds,  enabled  the  town  clock  to  strike  the 
hours.  In  1785  fire  engines  were  brought  from  Europe.  L-ightning-rods 
were  introduced  in  1787 ;  the  paper  mill  near  Salem  was  finished  in  1791. 
Eighty  persons  were  vaccinated  in  1802,  only  three  years  after  the  Jenner 
discovery  had  been  accepted  in  London  The  first  wool-carding  machin- 
ery in  the  State  was  introduced  into  Salem  in  1815,  and,  in  1840,  after  a 
brief  experiment  in  cotton  manufacturing,  the  Fries'  Mills  commenced 
their  successful  operation. 

In  1794  the  Boys'  School  House  was  erected,  during  the  principalship 
of  Bro.  Christian  Thomas  Pfohl. 

On  June  ist,  1798,  the  corner-stone  of  the  present  church  building  was 
laid.  The  organ  was  built  in  1799,  while  the  church  was  being  erected. 
The  edifice  was  dedicated  on  November  9th,  t8oo. 

In  1802  the  Salem  Female  Academy  was  opened  as  a  Boarding  School. 

In  1841  the  Home  Chapel  was  erected.  It  was  enlarged  to  its  present 
size  in  1881. 

In  1849  51  acres  were  sold  to  the  county  of  Forsyth,  for  the  new  coun- 
ty-town of  Winston.  The  court-house  was  finished  in  1850.  In  1856  the 
lease  system,  by  which  only  Moravians  could  be  holders  of  real  estate  in 
Salem,  was  given  up,  and  the  town,  under  its  mayor  and  council,  entered 
fully  into  the  rank  of  all  other  incorporated  towns  and  cities  of  the  State. 
It  is  now  supplied  with  extensive  new  water-works,  and  seven  miles  of 
street  mains  ;  with  electric  light  and  street  railway ;  with  steam  fire-engine ; 
with  a  mile  of  Main  street  paved  with  Belgian  blocks,  (in  accordance 
with  a  vote  for  a  bonded  debt  of  150,000,  held  on  the  4th  day  of  May, 
1891,)  and  an  excellent  street  system  throughout  the  rapidly  growing  city. 

On  December  15th,  1861,  the  new  Colored  Moravian  church  was  dedi- 
cated. The  other  Chapels  of  the  congregation  were  dedicated  at  the  fol- 
lowing dates:  East  Salem  Chapel,  December  i6th,  1877;  Elm  Street 
Chapel,  October  29th,  1882;  the  Centreville  Chapel,  November  29th,  1885; 
Calvary  Chapel,  in  Winston,  December  15th,  1889,  and  Christ  Chapel,  in 
West  Salem,  April  9th,  1893. 

In  connection  with  the  Salem  congregation,  the  following  Houses  are 
maintained,  under  the  rules  of  the  Church  :  A  Sisters'  House  for  unmar- 
ried women,  and  a  Widows'  House.  A  committee  of  ladies  maintains  a 
Home  for  women,  especially  the  aged,  and  children. 

The  following  Societies  exist  in  1893  : 

1.  The  Juvenile  Missionary  Society. 

2.  The  Ladies'  Missionary  Society. 

3.  The  "  Helping  Hand." 

4.  The  Young  Men's  Missionary  Society. 

5.  The  Society  for  the  Aid  of  the  Poor  of  the  Congregation. 


33 


6.  The  Christian  Endeavor. 

7.  The  Mite  Society. 

<S.  The  "  Wayside  Workers." 

At  the  end  of  1892  there  were  893  communicants,  77  non-communi- 
cants and  300  children  connecte>:  with  the  Salem  Home  congreo:ation  and 
its  Chapels.  There  were  1500  teachers  and  scholars  eiirulled  in  the  six 
Sunday  Schools  of  the  congregation. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  Pastors  of  Salem  congregition  : 


1.  PAUL  TIERSCH  1772-1774. 

2.  JOHN  MARTIN  GRAFF  1774-17S2. 

3.  JOHN  F.  PETER  1782-1783. 

4.  JOHN  DANIEL  KOEHLER  1784— iSoo. 

5.  CHRISTIAN  BENZIEN  1800— 1?02. 

6.  CHARLES  G.  REICHEL  1802— 1811. 

7.  JOHN  HERBST  1811-1812. 

8.  SIMON  PETER  1S12— 1S12. 

9.  JACOB  VAN  VLECK  1812— 1S22. 

10.  ANDREW  BENADE  1822-1829. 

11.  G.BENJAMIN  REICHEL  1829— 1833. 

12.  JOHN  C.  BECHLER  1833— 1836. 

13.  WILLIAM  HENRY  VAN  VLECK  1839-1849. 

14.  GEORGE  F.  BAHNSON  1849— 1858. 

15.  FRANCIS  R.  HOLLAND  1858-1864. 

16.  GEORGE  F.  BAHNSON  1S64-1869. 

17.  ALBERT  L.  OERTER  1869-1877. 

18.  EDWARD  RONDTHALER  1877— 


Assistants— JOHN  F.  McCUlSTON  1886— 

ARTHUR  D.  THALER  1892— 


APPENDIX  V. 


SPECIAL  SERVICES  AND  CHURCH  CUSTOMS  OF  SAL  \M 
CONGREGATION. 

The  general  principles  of  Moravian  worship  are  laid  down  by  General 
Synod.  Under  these  general  rules  a  large  degree  of  liberty  is  allowed  to 
the  separate  congregations  in  their  respective  form,  and  arrangements. 

In  addition  to  the  usual  order  of  Sunday  and  week-day  worship,  the 
Salem  church  has  the  following  special  services  : — 

lufant  Baptisms  ^VQ  administered  before  the  Sunday  morning  sermon, 
or  in  the  children's  homes. 

Confirmaiio7is  and  Adult  Baptisms  take  place  at  any  Communion,  and 
especially  on  Palm  Sunday. 

Holy  Commimio7i  is  celebrated  on  the  first  Sunday  of  the  year ;  on  the 
first  Sunday  in  Lent ;  on  Maundy  Thursday  in  the  Holy  Week  ;  on  Whit- 
Sunday  ;  on  the  first  Sunday  in  July ;  on  the  Sunday  nearest  the  r3th  of 
August ;  on  the  first  Sunday  of  October ;  on  the  Sunday  nearest  the  13th 
of  November ;  and  on  the  annual  covenant  days  of  the  several  Classes  of 
the  congregation.  The  Communion  is  preceded  by  a  Preparatory  meet- 
ing on  the  previous  Friday  evening. 


34 


The  "  Christian  Year,"  commencing  with  the  first  Sunday  in  Advent,  is 
carefully  observed. 

The  Christmas  Services  begin-  on  Christmas  Eve  with  a  meeting  at  4>^ 
P.  M.  for  little  children,  and  at  7//^  P.  M  for  the  older  congregation.  The 
Christmas  Liturgy  is  sung  and  the  sermon  preached  on  Christmas  morning. 

On  New  Years  Eve  a  service  for  children  is  held  at  P.  M.,  the 
History  of  the  Year,  called  the  Memorabilia,  is  read  at  8  P.  M  ,  and  the 
year  is  solemnly  closed  with  a  watch-service,  beginning  at  wYz  P.  M. 

During  the  LenleJi  Season  special  services  are  held  in  order  to  impress 
upon  the  minds  of  all  the  preciousness  of  the  sufferings  and  death  of  our 
blessed  Lord.  On  Palm  Sunday  the  congregation  gathers  to  hear  the  Acts 
and  Words  of  our  Saviour  on  that  day.  They  are  read  in  a  service  inter- 
spersed with  hymns.  The  same  order  is  lollowed  on  the  successive  days 
of  the  week  until  Good  Friday  evening.  Oil  Saturday  (Easter  Eve)  at 
2}4.  p.  M.  the  congregation  commemorates  the  blessed  rest  which  Christ 
has  secured  for  all  his  people  by  his  own  rest  in  the  grave.  On  Easter 
morning,  shortly  before  sunrise,  the  congregation  meets  at  the  church- 
door  to  celebrate  the  resurrection  of  Her  Lord  by  a  united  confession  of 
faith,  which  is  afterwards  concluded  on  the  graveyard  among  the  graves 
of  Christ's  departed  people. 

The  festivals  oi  Ascension,  Whitsuntide  and  Trinity  are  also  observed. 

Special  memorial  days  are  celebrated  as  follows :  The  Sunday  near- 
est August  13th,  in  view  of  the  gracious  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
whereby  the  Moravian  Church  was  renewed  on  August  13th,  1727  ;  the 
Sunday  nearest  November  13th,  which  is  the  congregation  anniversary. 

The  congregation  is  divided  into  Classes.  The  underlying  idea  of  the 
Classes  is  that  each  Class,  by  its  social  situation  in  life,  needs  to  have 
a  special  view  of  its  duties  and  encouragements  in  the  light  of  the  Sa- 
viour's merits  and  example,  and  that  all  the  members  of  the  Class  are 
ihus  to  be  bound  more  closely  and  kindly  together.  The  Class  Day  of  the 
Widows  falls  on  the  Sunday  nearest  April  30th ;  that  of  the  Unmarried 
Women  on  the  Sunday  nearest  May  4th  ;  that  of  the  Unmarried  Men  on 
the  Sunday  nearest  August  29th,  and  that  of  the  Married  People  and  Wid- 
owers on  the  Sunday  nearest  September  7th.  The  special  services  con- 
nected with  these  Class  days  consist  of  a  Preparatory  meeting  on  the  pre- 
\ious  Saturday  evening;  a  Festal  service  on  the  morning  and  a  lovefeast 
and  communion  in  the  afternoon  of  the  covenant  anniversary  Sunday. 

After  the  practice  of  the  Apostles  the  Moravian  Church  observes  love- 
fcfasts,  in  which  a  simple  meal  is  partaken  of  all  together^  in  token  of  the 
unity  of  Christ's  family.  The  service,  consists  of  anthems,  hymns,  prayer 
and  discourse.  It  is  a  private  service,  but  is  open  to  communicants  of 
other  Churches  who  have  been  invited  by  the  Pastor.  The  ordinary  love- 
feasts  of  the  year  are  the  Christmas  Eve  Lovefeast,  the  Easter  Eve  Love- 
feast,  the  Lovefeast  on  the  Sunday  nearest  August  13th,  the  Anniversary 
Lovefeast  on  the  Sunday  nearest  November  13th,  and  the  lovefeasts  on  the 
several  Class  Days. 


35 


Funerals  are  carefully  solemnized.  The  death  of  the  member  is  an- 
nounced by  three  chorals,  played  by  the  church  band  from  the  church 
spire.    The  first  and  third  tunes  are  alwrys  the  same  :  i.  e.  Tune  151  A, 

' '  A  pilgrim  us  preceding, 

Departs  unto  his  home,"  ,  . 

and 

"  Lord,  when  I  am  departing, 
Depart  thou  not  from  me." 

The  second  tune  indicates  the  class  to  which  the  departed  one  has  be- 
longed, i.  e.,  for  married  brethren,  T.  83  D  : 

"Jesus  ne'er  forsaketh  me." 

For  married  sisters,  T.  79  A  : 

"  His  plea  amid  deep  sighing, 
Mid  bitter  tears  and  crying, 
My  soul  with  peace  hath  blest." 

For  widowers,  T.  132  A  : 

"  His  goodness  and  his  mercies  ail 
Will  follow  me  forever." 

For  widows,  T.  149  A : 

"  Lift  thy  heart,  O  weary  soul. 
To  the  heavenly  mansion.  ' 

For  unmarried  brethren,  T.  185  A: 

"  Faithful  Lord,  my  only  joy  and  pleasure." 

Fur  unmarried  sisters,  T.  37  A  : 

"My  happy  lot  is  here, 
The  Lamb  to  follow." 

Fur  older  boys,  T.  23  : 

"Jesus'  grace  me  here  possessing, 
Early  with  his  peace  me  blessing." 

For  older  girls,  T.  14,  A : 

"  Lord  Jesus,  let  thy  grace  abound, 
Me  onward  still  direct." 

For  Httle  boys,  T.  39,  A  : 

"  The  Lord  to  his  fold  little  children  inviteth." 

For  little  girls,  T.  82  D: 

"  Should  not  I  for  gladness  leap. 
Led  by  Jesus  as  his  sheep." 

At  the  funeral  a  memoir  of  the  departed  is  communicated,  and  at  the 
grave  the  soft  music  of  the  church  band  among  the  deep-green  firs  tells 
of  a  good  soldier  gone  home  to  be  with  Christ. 

The  beautiful  "God's  Acre,"  in  which  the  dead  lie  under  recumbent 
stones  of  simple  form  and  uniform  size,  was  consecrated  on  June  6th,  1771, 


36 


when  a  young  brother,  John  Birkhead  was  laid  to  rest  beside  one  of  the 
central  firs. 

As  the  expenses  of  the  congregation  are,  in  part,  defrayed  by  a  Church 
Fund,  the  congregation  takes  the  opportunity  of  contributing  the  more 
liberally  to  the  monthly  collections,  which  are  gathered  on  the  first 
Sunday  morning  and  evening  of  the  month,  as  follows: 


January, 

Missions  among  the  Heathen. 

February, 

Provincial  Collection. 

March, 

Bohemian  and  Moravian  Missions. 

April, 

Home  Missions. 

May, 

Bible  Collection. 

June, 

Special. 

July, 

Bohemian  and  Moravian  Missions. 

August, 

Missions  among  the  Heathen. 

September, 

Special. 

October, 

Home  Missions. 

November, 

Theological  Seminary. 

December, 

For  the  Poor  of  the  Congregation. 
* 

CON'CLUSION. 

'  'And  as  many  as  walk  accordhig  to  this  rule,  peace  be  on  them 
and  mercy,  and  up07i  the  Israel  of  God^ — Gal.  vi.,  i6. 


